Hyperloop explained in 10 images

Yesterday evening, around a year after first teasing it, Elon Musk revealed the Hyperloop to the world. It’s a futuristic mass transit system that would essentially run alongside regular trains, and would only replace planes for trips of short distance. It’s all a bit complicated, so if you can’t be bothered to read through a 57-page PDF, these 10 images should roughly explain the Hyperloop concept in a just a few seconds.

The proposed tube from San Francisco to Los Angeles would cost either $6 billion if it was for people only, or $10 billion if it could also fit road vehicles. The tube would only reach a maximum of 1,000 miles, or else it would become too expensive. Musk explained that, with the vehicle version of the tube, passengers could simply drive their car right into the pod, similar to how you can drive your car onto some ferries.

In very simple terms, the Hyperloop works similarly to how an air hockey table does, except the air hockey table would include linear electric motors. Aluminum passenger pods would reside within the tubes, and the tubes would stand above the ground resting on support columns in order to avoid interfering with any kind of human infrastructure. Each tube would be around 50 to 100 feet apart from one another, and loop back together at end points. The loopway is necessary in order to keep air flowing through the tunnel, which helps push the pods along.

The pods contain air bearings, resembling something like skis, that also shoot bursts of air to push it along. So, it’s like an air hockey table where the puck also shoots its own blasts of air. Linear electric motors would be used in order to help increase or reduce speed, while solar panels help generate energy to run the transit system.

Both air bearings and linear electric motors have been proven to work just fine, so now it’s just a matter of proving they can work in this capacity. Also, it’s a matter of convincing someone to build it, and getting a state to allow it.

Hyperloop concept cars

Hyperloop energy chart

Hyperloop concept pod

Hyperloop passenger pod concept. The pods need at least five miles of space from one another in order to safely come to a full stop. They can reach a maximum of 800mph.

Interior of Hyperloop pod

Hyperloop concept pod interior.

Hyperloop passenger pod interior

Hyperloop passenger pod interior. A version was also proposed that could fit cars.

Hyperloop tube streamlines

Streamlines from Hyperloop speeding along the tube system.

Hyperloop skis

Air bearing skis that move and support the pod through blasts of air.

Hyperloop tube

Hyperloop tube runs from Los Angeles to San Francisco, with a maximum distance of 1,000 miles. It would connect major cities that aren’t across the country from one another.

Hyperloop tube and solar panels

Hyeprloop tube and interior, with solar panels gathering energy.

Suggested Hyperloop route

Suggested Hyperloop route from San Francisco to Los Angeles. We can only hope it’ll be called the Hyperroute. In theory, it would be possible to include other branches as shown in the diagram, but local stops would be out of the question.

Air hockey tables

Bonus: Basically, the Hyperloop works largely the same way these do, but with motors.